Category: Books

Books

Whose body? by

The body of a stout man is found in a bathroom, naked but for a gold pince-nez. At the same time, a prominent banker goes missing. Is the dead man the missing Mr. Levy? And if so, how did he manage to end up in Mr. Thipps’ bathroom? And was he murdered?

This is the first book Sayers wrote to feature Lord Peter Wimsey. He is the second son of an ancient English house, his elder brother is the Duke of Denver. And his hobby is criminology. Already he has solved the case of some missing emeralds, now he is on two cases at once; to find the missing Levy & to figure out the who, why and where concerning the mystery body.

2 April 2010
Books

Once Upon a Time by

Ever since Carl announced that it was time for this year’s Once Upon a Time reading challenge I’ve been trying to decide what to read for it. It’s a dilemma!! but...

28 March 2010
Books

The game by

Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes have returned home to Sussex in order to enjoy the new year, but soon enough they travel to London to visit Holmes’ brother, Mycroft, whose health is not the best. While there he suggests that perhaps they might look into a case for him. A possibly-missing person. In India.

Of course they head off, and the person they are looking for, none other than Kimball O’Hara, known to many from Rudyard Kipling’s Kim.

28 March 2010
Books

Marley & me by

I’ve had this book on my shelves for years now. It was on sale for half-price when I bought it; that’s the only reason I own it in hardback. I much prefer paperbacks, more practical. Since I bought the book it has been made into a film and become even more famous. To be honest the film looked god-awful, so I didn’t bother to watch it. But I always knew I’d eventually read the book, and when better than on a lazy Sunday when I should have been cleaning the apartment?

I’m sure everyone knows the story. A newly married couple decide to get a dog, and so buy a labrador puppy, who grows up into the world’s worst dog. Only of course he isn’t the world’s worst, he simply has some bad habits. Very bad habits that include his destruction of numerous items. But at heart Marley is a sweet good-natured dog whose labrador-ish optimism teachers his owners all about life and, eventually, loss.

28 March 2010
Books

A good dog by

We’ve been on a bit of an “animal-human relationship” kick at work lately. I chose this one at random one afternoon. It is the second book that the author Jon Katz wrote about his life after meeting Devon/Orson, the border collie. he has many others detailing his life with other dogs. But Orson was his “once in a lifetime” dog. The one that changes your life.

26 March 2010
Books

Justice Hall by

I do love these books.

This the sixth in the series returns our heroes to their present after the flashback that was O Jerusalem. That sentence doesn’t really make much sense, but figure it out, think of it as a challenge :) Holmes & Russell have just returned from The Moor and are settling back in at home when their comes a disturbance at their door. Ali Hazr has shown up, with a head wound and wanting their assistance. He needs their help with Mahmoud, his “brother”. Of course Holmes had already pointed out that neither of the two arabs they were travelling with were actually from that region, but it is, nevertheless, a surprise to learn where they come from and just what an aristocratic name both bear.

23 March 2010
Books

Blankets by

This is one I picked up because I’d seen positive mentions on a few blogs, I think Nymeth’s post was the one that prompted the purchase. So it came with a little bit of hype. That being said, I don’t really read reviews before I read a book, just skim the opening paragraph for a sense of what the reviewer thought of the book, so I wasn’t all hyped out. And Blankets did live up to those positive reviews.

23 March 2010
Books

Columbine by

I first heard about this book on Metafilter when Susan Klebold, mother of one of the killers, had an article in O Magazine. Before that I had never been interested in the shooting. Not beyond the evils of rubber-necking at some one else’s tragedy. But the discussion there seemed to suggest that this was a well-thought out and reasoned look at the community surrounding the school, as well as the killers themselves. And the author, Cullen, believed that the popular myths about the shootings shouldn’t stand unchallenged.

18 March 2010
Books

O Jerusalem by

I’m continuing to work my way through the Mary Russell novels; I slowed down a bit for two reasons. One, I don’t want to overload on the ‘verse. Two, the library ran out of the series. Well, it skipped the next so I took my time with O Jerusalem while I boughtJustice Hall for my own shelves. I will at some point go order all this series, I really do think that they are books you can very easily reread and enjoy time and again.

15 March 2010
Books

Wedlock by

Mary Eleanor Bowes was born in 1749. Her father was extremely wealthy and, unusually for the time, had her well educated. A most eligible young woman, not least because she was the richest heiress in C18th Britain. Her first wedding was nothing unusual for the time. Pretty loveless and to an older man it wasn’t a romantic love match. Her second, to a dashing young soldier, was. Mary Eleanor probably hadn’t intended to marry Andrew Robinson Stoney, but upon hearing that he had fought a duel for her honour and was laying on his deathbed wishing for nothing but her hand in marriage… well, who could resist that romance!

4 March 2010
Books

Living with the dead by

The plot of Living with the dead revolves around the character of Robyn; recently widowed she has moved to LA and taken a job in PR with Portia Kane, a Paris Hilton-type celebrity. Or wannabe celebrity. But when Portia is murdered Robyn finds herself the main suspect and in her confusion makes a break for it. She is helped out by her best friend, Hope Adams, and her boyfriend, Karl Marstsen.

25 February 2010
Books

Frostbitten by

It has been ages since I’ve read any of Armstrong’s books. I think I sorta faded away from them with Broken. But that was way back in 2006, she’s had four more books in the series out since then, as well as some YA books in the ‘verse, not to mention the ooodles of short stories. And while these books are pretty far removed from the cannon there is something so enjoyable about them.

23 February 2010